Bengaluru: The Dow and the S&P 500 were little changed, while the Nasdaq was firmly higher, propped up by the high-flying technology trio of Apple, Amazon and Microsoft.

The S&P tech sector was up 0.2 percent. Tech stocks have been at the center of a sharp recovery in the S&P since a market rout in February, driving the index close to its record high.

Shares of Apple rose 1 percent, while those of Amazon were up 0.5 percent and Microsoft 0.3 percent.

“The S&P has been climbing gradually amid geopolitical and trade concerns,” said Andre Bakhos, managing director at New Vines Capital LLC in Bernardsville, New Jersey.

“Investor mindset has been predicated on a strong economy and a longer-term perspective, and that has been playing out very nicely.”

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, suggesting that a strong economy was helping the labor market counter ongoing trade tensions.

At 9:50 a.m. EDT the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 14.63 points, or 0.06 percent, at 25,569.12, the S&P 500 was unchanged at 2,857.70 and the Nasdaq Composite was up 11.39 points, or 0.14 percent, at 7,899.72.

Seven of the 11 main S&P sectors were higher. The materials sector led the gains as aluminum prices rose.